How to Set Goals to Improve Performance
I want to win the championship.
I want to place in the top three.
These are some examples of the kind of goals I hear from clients when they first come to work with me. While these goals are often attainable and exciting, they largely focus on the outcome rather than the athlete’s own performance or process. By only focusing solely on the outcome, athletes may become easily disappointed in themselves, experience pre-competition anxiety, or lose confidence. This is because the outcome is not in the athlete’s control. In comparison, an athlete’s performance and process are in their control. Thus, by focusing on the process and their own performance instead of the outcome, athletes feel more confident, experience less pre-competition anxiety, and become more resilient to mistakes and losses.
Outcome Goals
Outcome goals are often conceptualized as “me vs. other.” The “other” could include teammates, competitors, coaches, or environmental conditions. Outcome goals are often aspirational and motivational. However, outcome goals are outside of the athlete’s control. While an athlete can do everything right and play at their best ability, they still might not achieve their desired outcome goal. Thus, focusing solely on the outcome can increase anxiety and decrease confidence.
Performance Goals
In comparison to outcome goals, performance goals can be conceptualized as “me vs. myself.” These goals may seem more intangible than outcome goals as they focus on the athlete’s effort, attitude, technique, and strategy. They emphasize the athlete’s individual performance in competition. For instance, a runner’s performance goal may be to compete in the present moment rather than winning the race (outcome goal). Performance goals focus on an athlete’s personal performance or standard, regardless of others, and thus, are within an athlete’s control.
Process Goals
Process goals are the “how to” of performance goals. Athletes should identify at least three process goals that support each performance goal. For instance, a runner may set process goals that focus on their fueling, pacing, and self-talk to help them achieve their desired time goal. Process goals are specific actions, habits, or techniques that an athlete can consistently apply in competition and practice. Thus, process goals are completely within an athlete’s control and can help them to achieve long-term improvement. By focusing on the process, athletes can improve their confidence and decrease their anxiety. These goals require patience and consistency.
How Goal Setting Works
Athletes should use all three goals for effective goal setting. They first must identify what they ultimately want (outcome goal), the standards they need to reach (performance goals), and then the daily actions they can take to get there (process goals). In this process, it is important for athletes to ensure that their goals are aligned with their values. Taking a moment to understand one’s vision, values, and/or purpose is an important step before and during the goal setting process. During and after the goal setting process, it’s important for athletes to monitor their progress and adjust goals as necessary. By following this framework, athletes can experience enhanced motivation, enjoyment, confidence, and responsibility.
Making Goals SMART
A final consideration for athletes as they make and review their goals is to make these goals SMART. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
Specific means that an athlete’s goals should state exactly what they envision.
Measurable means that the athlete should have some way to track their progress.
Achievable ensures that the athlete’s goal is realistic and attainable.
Relevant confirms that the goals align within the context of their sport, values, and vision.
Time-bound goals set a specific timeframe or deadline to create focus.
Setting SMART outcome, performance, and process goals provides clear directions, helps an athlete monitor their own progress, and increases the likelihood that athletes will reach their goals.
Since athletes want to win and typically have an outcome goal in mind, they should start by identifying their outcome goals and then working their way down to performance and process goals when setting their goals. When working to attain their goals, athletes should then move the other way. They should begin by largely focusing on their process goals, which will put them on the path to reaching their performance goals and eventually their outcome goals. Athletes should write their goals down to increase personal responsibility and share them with others to increase accountability.
Lastly, while process and performance goals help an athlete gain control over their sport performance, it is important to recognize that sports are often unpredictable. The road to achieving goals may be long and have many obstacles. Athletes can manage these road bumps through self-compassion and by adjusting their goals along the way. Self-compassion involves building internal acceptance and understanding when things get difficult. While high goals and standards help athletes to achieve excellence in sport, balancing these goals and standards with self-compassion and adjusting them when necessary is the healthiest strategy.
At Athlete Insight, we offer individual counseling to help athletes develop their mental skills and tools necessary for peak performance. We help them create SMART outcome, performance, and process goals to improve focus, control, and their mindset in sport.
With the right support, athletes can learn how to engage in a healthy goal setting process to boost their confidence and performance.